1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink-jet recording apparatus for recording on a record medium by ejecting ink.
2. Description of Related Art
An ink-jet recording apparatus such as an ink-jet printer has an ink-jet head on which a large number of nozzles are formed. The nozzles eject ink onto a record medium such as papers to record an image. In such apparatus, there are two types: a serial type in which recording is performed on a paper being conveyed in a sub scanning direction, with a head being moved in a main scanning direction, along the width of the paper, perpendicular to the sub scanning direction; and a line type in which recording is performed on a paper being conveyed with a fixed head having its width substantially equal to the width of the paper. Particularly in the line type, because the head need not be moved upon recording, the recording speed can be higher than that of the serial type.
In either of the serial type and the line type, in order to obtain a good image, each nozzle formed on the head must be maintained for good ink ejection. For this purpose, maintenance is carried out, which includes a purge operation for discharging ink containing therein bubbles, dust, dirt, and impurities, out of each ink flow passage in the head; and a wiping operation for wiping an ink ejection face of the head on which the nozzles are formed, so as to remove surplus ink droplets, dust, and dirt from the ink ejection face.
In the serial type, the head can be moved structurally. Thus, maintenance can be carried out after the head is moved outside the print region where the head performs a printing operation, on an extension of the line on which the head is moved upon printing. In the line type, however, because the head has its ink ejection face broader than that of the serial type, if the apparatus is designed such that maintenance is carried out after the head is horizontally moved outside the print region, it brings about an increase in size of the apparatus. In the line type, therefore, while the head is kept at the position for printing, a conveyor belt for conveying the paper is withdrawn from the position where the conveyor belt is opposed to the ink ejection face of the head, and then a maintenance unit is brought to a position where the maintenance unit is opposed to the ink ejection face of the head. Maintenance is carried out in this state.
Such a technique is known for a line-type ink-jet printer as a conveyor belt and a maintenance unit can be swung (see JP-A-2000-62151). In this technique, upon maintenance, the conveyor belt is swung by 90 degrees around one of two belt rollers to be withdrawn, and then the maintenance unit is swung by 90 degrees around a shaft opposite to the swing axis of the conveyor belt with respect to a head so that the maintenance unit is opposed to an ink ejection face of the head.